Subnostr

Yet another reminder of the racketeering mafia we call government:

I get a traffice fine in the post because I was briefly stationary on some yellow street markings. CCTV photos show another 5 cars doing the same thing as me at the same time. Was completely unavoidable since the markings covered a two lane main road for about 80 meters. Probably 1000s of cars fall into the same trap every day.

Apparently I can get a discount if I give in and pay right away, otherwise it's £160, or £240 if I take longer than 28 days 😮 The convenience and financial incentive of just giving in is very tempting - kind of like a mafioso saying "let me make you a deal".

The really evil part is that if I did just pay it I know it would encourage me to think that others who didn't pay, or fought it, were being unreasonable. An example of how the system turns us against each other.

Reply to this note

Please Login to reply.

Discussion

Viktor Vsk 2y ago

Its not a mafia, its a game. You lost because its a complex game and complex games at scale can’t be 100% objectively equal and fair

You can change minor rules if they are too bad in this specific place. You can also try to stop some games. And sometimes it works. But the problem doesn’t magically disappear. Instead players who followed some rules (which are SOMETIMES bad) start following no rules, which are ALMOST ALWAYS bad. And the basic game theory comes into play - strongest/richest wins.

Gunson 2y ago

This seems really insightful and profound, but way too galaxy brained for me to understand 😂

Government = Mafia + rigged game?

Viktor Vsk 2y ago

Government is people, even if its hard to believe :) police are people, doctors are people, killers are people, volunteers are people - just like me and you :) and people could be good or bad

Set of rules govts create (laws) - is a game

Viktor Vsk 2y ago

Long story short, fines for driving are rather good. But if in your case there is really a place where its unavoidable to break rules - it has to be changed. And it doesn’t require a revolution to achieve :)

Gunson 2y ago

I think maybe I didn't make my point clearly enough. I'm not suggesting a revolution because I go a traffic fine ... I mean, what?!

I'm saying the incident is an analogy for how governments usually don't have our best interests in mind, and even weaponise compliance to turn us against each other. Replace traffic fine with lack of access due to no COVID vaccine etc. The stated intention is "the good of all" or something, but in reality the goal is control, and many unwittingly help the government/mafia enforce it by condemning their neighbours.

Chris Liss 2y ago

You have framed it correctly, and you should *not* pay, and in fact, you (if you have the stomach/resources for it) should find a lawyer, take them to court, find a jounalist willing to publish something on it, etc.

No one has the time or energy, but it’s not a trivial thing:

https://chrisliss.substack.com/p/game-theory

Gunson 2y ago

Nice essay - I fully agree with it, although admit I didn't have the courage to avoid accessing those gated privileges since I needed to travel to see family. My traffic fine is just a tiny and trivial example but still a perfect fit for what you articulate.

Chris Liss 2y ago

Thanks — we all compromise in various ways. I pay my taxes even though by doing so, I make it harder for others not to comply.

But especially when they push something new, think it’s really important to draw the line lest it become normalized.